


Redemption

by AlaskaAby



Category: Saint Seiya
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Reunited and It Feels So Good
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-13
Updated: 2017-06-19
Packaged: 2018-05-26 12:13:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,781
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6238282
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlaskaAby/pseuds/AlaskaAby
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The armors that the golden saints wore were shining and the metallic resonance was heard in the great lounge. They woke up of their supposedly eternal dream wrapped in the love of their incarnated deity; it was the first thing that they perceived in this new life.</p><p>Post Hades fic.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

They were in the Great Chamber of the Thirteenth Temple. All of Athena’s gold saints. Together with her also was the former Aries Saint, the Tibetan Shion, who was dressed in the typical tunic of the Chief of the Greek Goddess of wisdom’s order.

 

The armors that the golden saints wore were shining and the metallic resonance was heard in the great lounge. They woke up of their supposedly eternal dream wrapped in the love of their incarnated deity; it was the first thing that they perceived in this new life. Sat in armchairs arranged around a great table presided by Athena, they opened their eyes, with their revived young bodies.

 

She looked at them with the same tenderness a mother professes to her children. Not a single one of them was absent. There were thirteen men in armor since Kanon of Geminis was there as well, next to his older brother Saga, as well as the Sagittarius Saint, the Greek Aioros, brother of Leo Aiolia.

 

The goddess greeted and thanked them for sacrificing their lives in front of the Wailing Wall in Hell. She announced that she had agreed with the other Olympic Gods to revive her saints as a sign of the great love she had them, as a reasonable compensation for their loyalty. She wanted them to enjoy the rest of their days peacefully. Shion took the title of Patriarch of the Sanctuary back, and he was going to supervise the current saints, as well as the apprentices.

 

Waiting outside was an escort of four Bronze Saints. Before leaving the room, Athena enfolded her golden knights with her warm cosmo and each one of them received it as a blessing. It was like a balm for their weary souls, after the torments lived in Hades’ territory, where their lives ended, before the war their Lady broke through with her Bronzed Knights.

 

Their goddess had forgiven each person equally, with no hard feelings. They themselves realized that those who wore dark armors as Hades’ soldiers had done it to protect Athena, although condemned and accused of traitors by the means they used.

 

They followed her suit and rose from their places to greet their peers. Dohko of Libra, rushed to embrace his old comrade in arms, Shion, greeting Aries Mu and Taurus Aldebaran along the way.

 

Scorpio Milo was comforted by Aquarius Camus, who was smiling gently at the lack of control of his best friend, who was weeping. Although the French water carrier was very close to losing his nerves, he was still able to hold a little longer without neglecting his composure. He was sure he would lose it when he will reunite with his former student. But no doubt that it’ll be Milo’s chance to be act as his handkerchief, along with the Swan saint.

 

The twins were reconciled after years of separation, shedding some tears of happiness for their restored brotherhood. Sagittarius went to congratulate them before going with his brother and merge into a tight embrace with him. Laughing and shouting with joy at the long awaited meeting. The golden lion sobbed while his brother laughed in happiness returning to hug him. To offer him comfort, he placed a kiss on his brother’s forehead.

 

Other saints were less effusive in their friendly get-together. Virgo Shaka received handshakes and pats on the shoulders of all his colleagues, except for the Bull, who squeezed him strongly in an embrace with the young Ram. Brazilian Aldebaran raised his friends from the floor, giving them tight bear hugs and the three of them laughed like children.

 

Pisces Aphrodite and Cancer Death Mask were with Capricorn Shura. The Italian Crab waited Aphrodite stop squeezing the Spanish, who just smiled saying he had also missed both of them. They were released immediately and the golden Goat was almost crushed by strong embrace of the Crab. Swedish turn to scold began, shouting the Italian and asking him to be more careful. Shura kissed the Italian on the cheek and he loosens his grip, letting the Iberian breathe. Shura got close to the saint of Pisces to leave another kiss on the Swedish cheek. Only Capricorn was wearing a helmet, the other two had left theirs on the table. Kiss them to pacify them was something he did when they were apprentices, but the habit was lost when they realized they were not kids anymore.

 

Then the trio approached Camus and the elder of the twins, Saga, and those five marched to greet the Saint of the Virgin who reacted to the affection of his teammates with a little smile. Lastly Aphrodite wrapped his arms around the blonde’s waist. Alluding to the extreme thinness of the Virgo saint, Aphrodite asked if it was what it meant to be the closer to God, as he seemed to suffer from starvation. Shaka’s response was an easygoing and loud laughter.

 

A general laughter was heard in the middle of the group and some yet nervous knights relaxed. It attracted curious glances and induced the remaining golden saints to approach the congregation around the saint of Virgo.

 

Aldebaran came and began to crush his companions, gaining surprised shouts, smiles and laughter from them.

Among all the fuss, there was a saint who stood still: Shura. This did not go unnoticed by Death Mask, who followed the imaginary line where Capricorn was looking: the Sagittarius Saint. Aioros was smiling as he hugged several others comrades.

 

The Cancer saint crossed glances with Aphrodite. They knew it would be very difficult for the Goat to appear in front of the martyr of the Sanctuary, being Shura his murderer. The Spanish took a deep breath and straightened his back. The other two showed their support by squeezing his shoulder and the Spanish reciprocated this gesture with a smile.

 

He walked straight to Aioros, who gave him a slight smile when he saw his old friend approaching. During the short walk, Capricorn repeated over and over that he needed to ask for forgiveness. If he wasn’t worth such indulgence, he’d ensure him he’ll understand. He was sure the centaur no longer considered him a friend, but his forgiveness would be a great achievement for his new life.

 

Shura stood in front of the golden archer, set to begin his short speech with a "Saint of Athena, Sagittarius Aioros", something formal, but got speechless and his pulse started to quicken.

 

The other saints felt the change in Shura’s cosmo, the resonance of armors stopped. Laughter and chatting suddenly stopped. The attention of all other saints dragged to the saints of the ninth and tenth temples.

 

Shura, gasping like a fish out of water, tried to speak but was left without words. He looked at the floor; he tried to calm down, breathing deeply. The archer was concerned about the Iberian.

 

Aioros took pity on him and called him softly by his name, and then Shura raised his head again. The Spanish trembled at the sound of Sagittarius’ voice. He knew Aioros wasn’t someone to hold a grudge, he’ll forgive him. Then the Greek gave him a sweet smile.

 

"I am glad to see you again, Shura"

 

The golden archer forgave him.

 

Capricorn was relieved. He hid his face, sinking his chin on his own chest. He could not contain his joy. Lead by a strange impulse, Shura came forward to embrace Sagittarius, but the archer placed a hand against his chest to stop him.

 

_Oh, no._

 

His mistake was thinking that in forgiving him they had become friends again. His vision was blurred by the tears that threatened to fall. It was clear that Aioros did not want his friendship, that was lost years ago, when he doubted his friend.

 

Indignation and surprise rose among the witnesses of this scene. Before Aphrodite or Death Mask advanced and complain to the archer, the other saints stopped them.

 

The Spanish clenched his fists against his thighs. He was going to turn around, go straight to his temple and shut forever. He was extremely embarrassed and did not want anyone to see him like that.

 

The archer heard him whisper: "Excuse me, Aioros".

 

But the Sagittarius Saint didn’t let him go. He gripped Shura’s arm and held him tightly. The Spaniard though Aioros would reprehend him. If Aioros wanted to humiliate him, he had the right. I’d be nothing compared to the suffering he caused him. That was why he didn’t resist. He did not look up; instead he blinked several times in order to prevent the tears from falling.

 

Aioros saw Shura flinch and spoke very softly: "Hey, look at me, please." But the Spanish didn’t obey. Sagittarius lifted his face, but Shura did not dare to look at him.

 

"You always forget something" - continued the archer - "You should not approach people threatening them with those horns. Do you remember when you got your armor and went with it on to my house and almost pierce my chest?" - Shura gritted his eyes with a wince.

 

Aioros not intended to remind the Spanish his sin. The centaur quickly took the Capricorn Saint’s helmet in his hands and removed it carefully.

 

"Come on, I'm here" - whispered the centaur.

 

The Iberian began to mourn in Aioros’ chest, crying soundlessly, a torrent of tears streaming down his cheeks, his mouth open in a silent scream. His grief was heartbreaking to see, but something necessary for atonement.

 

They were in that way for some time. Aioros’ way of lulling was rocking his body. He was still holding his friend when the armors began to resound again, albeit almost inaudible.

 

It was a good sign.

 

It was a new beginning.

 

At the end of the day all saints were relaxing in their respective temples. Some arrived too late to rest because they spent a long time together with their friends. Only the twins were inseparable. The day had been exhausting.

 

But despite all the suffering, they were left with the joy, the love and the experiences lived that made living in this world worthy.

 

Tomorrow would be another day, and being good or bad, they wouldn’t be afraid.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued...


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fandom: Saint Seiya  
> Disclaimer: Saint Seiya and all the familiar characters that appear here are property of Masami Kurumada  
> Warning: Post Hades Saga
> 
> I didn't think I'd continue this fic with another chapter, but I realized that yes I can. What happened was that I had no inspiration.
> 
> I want to thank to my betareader Solar Knight Marie for her time and work in this fanfic.
> 
> Dedicated to all the people who marked it as a favorite, or sent me a review, I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as the previous one.

Shion felt the adrenaline running through his veins. When he participated in the holy wars, he also had experienced its effects go through his body during the bloody battles, but now it was different, he was faced with a great expectation, into the unknown, but without the threat of any attack.

 

The Tibetan desired to run, cry, and laugh, all at the same time. Dohko embraced him before leaving the thirteenth Temple. When he left his gold saints in the main room, he followed Atena and his courtship of bronze saints to the private rooms of the Pope.

 

His skin still felt the grip of the Chinese man, it was a brief moment, but the Libra Saint was very euphoric in his friendly gesture.

 

They had no time to exchange a conversation, it was only a greeting of courtesy, not the statement of a longing that both were dragging and needed to express.

 

Atena and he entered the room; when he was alone with the goddess of wisdom, she explained that her transportation would soon arrive. The Patriarch then decided to make a request and turned to addressed her according to his rank as subordinate, kneeling in front of her.

 

"Goddess Atena, if you allow me, I wish to ask you a question."

 

"You don't have to ask me for permission, Shion, you can ask anything and please do not continue to prostrate in front of me, come and take a seat with me."

 

They sat around a table decorated with an exquisite tablecloth next to a window with an enviable view of the Sanctuary. The Goddess then spoke:

 

"Tell me Shion, what is your request?"

 

Shion was still a little anxious, but he cleared his throat, sighed a little and made his inquiry: "I don't want to seem rude with my question, but why we were returned to life? ", he continued to explain: "that is, with the bronze saints at your side, it was not necessary to do so, they have proved their worth as Your true guardians."

 

"It wasn't necessary for me, Shion. But for all of you."

 

Shion was speechless when he heard that answer.

 

"Humans are unique and special, but they put aside their spiritual growth by worldly matters, such as betrayal, power, revenge, jealousy, or greed, that seduce them into their nets for wrong decisions. Understands this well, Shion, I don't judge them, I only take the opportunity that my father Zeus gave me by return them their lost time."

 

Atena explained that all human beings have a purpose in this life, and that her loved Golden Saints failed to carry out that spiritual transcendence for the evolution of their souls.

 

Shion was meditative, assimilating the words of the goddess; his reasoning made him fear that their lives would only last as far as the time that would take them to meet that goal.

 

Saori, noting the Patriarch's serious expression, guessed that thought and took him out of his mistake: she revived them so that they will enjoy their lives as normal men as much as possible, they'll live their days of youth without the constant responsibility of their obligations as warriors of a Goddess.

 

She assured him that the Moirae would be in charge of their destinies threads. These deities, according to mythology, spun, measured and cut the thread of life; therefore, they dictate how long their existence would last. It depended not on her at all.

 

The Supreme Head of the Sanctuary seemed to calm down with the response of his deity and finally requested permission to retire to his room. He actually expected to meet his student and his friend again.

 

Then something happened that Shion never testified before, their Goddess now seemed more human: Saori blushed and apologized for holding him for so long.

 

Shion quickly bowed to her, also feeling embarrassed, and told her that it he wanted clarify the current situation of the sanctuary and its occupants. Although the goddess wanted his knights to enjoy their new lives, he still had responsibilities and duties related to the functioning of the order, and the former Aries Saint thought that he'd enjoy it in the same way, for the sole reason that he likes his work.

 

Listening to his words, Atena smiled and wished him good luck in his reinstatement to the sanctuary as Supreme Head of the order.

 

Shion thank her, he guarded her towards the exit of the temple where Seiya was waiting for her. Seiya hugged Shion before opening the door of the helicopter for Saori and helping her in. Accommodated in their seats were the Andromeda Saint, Shun, together with his brother Ikki, the Phoenix Saint, and in a wide seat where the Goddess and Seiya seated was also the Dragon Saint, Shiryu.

 

Saori, as Mitsumasa Kido's heiress, had many businesses to attend and needed to return to Japan. After leaving them at the city airport, a private plane would take her there together with his personal court.

 

With the last natural light of the day, with a clear and full of colors reddish sky, Shion saw the ship heading towards the North, and, sighing, he headed to his room.

 

Inside, Dohko, Mu and the Aries' little apprentice, Kiki, were waiting for him impatiently.

 

The first to react was the Chinese man, who came smiling at Shion and embraced him with the same force as before. The Tibetan corresponded with the same spirit.

 

The child made a move to join the embrace, but Mu withheld him from the shoulder, Kiki understood the message. That meaningful hug was to be shared only by the Patriarch and the Libra Saint first, then there would be time for them to join.

 

"I missed you!" exclaimed both with excitement.

 

They laughed, then fell silent and looked at each other, then laughed again, harder this time. It seemed somewhat rehearsed, to do it so perfectly, in unison, it was even funny. Kiki ran to embrace both and jumped into the arms of Shion, the young Tibetan came and it was his turn to share hugs. Shion and Dohko had tears in their eyes, but they didn't let them escape.

 

No one spoke, but with smiley faces they moved slowly to avoid breaking the physical contact, or the magic felt in the air, into the living room of the Patriarch.

 

They had many things to talk about.

 

And then rest, if they made it.

 

 

**To be continued...**

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	3. Chapter 3

Fandom: Saint Seiya

Characters: Mu, Aldebaran, Kiki

Disclaimer: Saint Seiya and all the well-known characters that appear here are property of Masami Kurumada.

Warning: Post Saga of Hades.

I began this fic in March of 2015, more than one year later I published the second chapter, because, in fact, it wasn't going to have any more chapters, but as people liked the story, I continued it and I will continue it while I'm inspired.

Dedicated to everyone who marked it as favorite or sent me kudos or a review, I hope that you all enjoy this chapter.

Warning: Some chapters will be a vignette type, that is to say, shorter than the others.

I want to thank Solar Knight Marie, for her help being my beta reader in this chapter, she's always kind and lovable. XOXO

* * *

 

The following morning was splendid. This was one if one was a fish, since it was raining cats and dogs in the whole area, so much that it was forming small creeks. Water was following a way down forming cascades that were falling down on multiple dispersed abysses along the Sanctuary. The territory was illuminated by lightning, which stunned everyone with the sound of the bombastic thunders.

 

There were no doubts that the thunderstorm was over them, and it was expected to continue sometime more.

 

The stage was deserted; no ordinary man would take the risk walking under this downpour along except due to an essential matter. Almost all the golden saints were asleep in its respective rooms, restoring its mental, physical and emotional health. They all ended completely exhausted by the events of the preceding day.

 

In the first temple still a little tired, but very happy Aries Mu, was preparing the breakfast, while his apprentice, the little Kiki, was still sleeping deeply on his bed, foreign to the exterior storm. The golden ram would not be late in calling him to eat his food, but he was wishing the child to have his necessary hours of sleep. The previous day they went away to their respective rooms pretty late at night.

 

The hours before sleeping, were an emotions' whirlpool. It was more significant than the last time they were together in front of the Wailing Wall, because this time it wasn't necessary to carry out a mission. They didn't wake up to face an enemy who was threatening the peace, but woke up like the young heroes that their goddess wanted to reward for its allegiance and sacrifice.

 

The lemurian felt that from the moment he opened his eyes in the thirteenth temple. The reunion with his comrades-in-arms had occurred in a very expressive way and never ceased to surprise him Aioros and Shura's scene, or the demonstration of affection of all others, including Deathmask and Aphrodite.

 

The current atmospheric phenomenon was the opposite of what his current mental state. He was feeling a beautiful interior peace, as it had never experienced in his life. To celebrate it, he had the idea of preparing _Gundain_ , a type of cake prepared for Tibetan New Year, accompanied by sweet tea and _laxi_ , a type of well-worn yogurt and a little of honey.

 

The protector of the first temple of the Sanctuary had the impression that this day was a new beginning in their lives, starting from scratch, without taking into account the background, for him and his companions. Taking the example of Athena, he himself would try to take the opportunity.

 

"Good morning, can I enter?" someone asked from the kitchen door.

 

It was Aldebaran of Taurus. He was wearing an enormous raincoat, protecting him from the climate's inclemency.

 

"Oh, good morning, Aldebaran, come in please", he greeted him with a smile and helped him to leave the soaked clothes in a safe place to dry.

 

"I think it's too early. Am I bothering?" the Brazilian expressed.

 

"Of course not, you are welcome into this house. Do you want to sit? I hope you're hungry." invited the young Arian, putting the dishes on the table.

 

"Very well, I cannot push this invitation back." the bull said with a big smile "It smells delightfully", and he began to devour the plate that Mu served to him, immediately congratulating the cook on his extraordinary culinary capacity.

 

They continued to eat in silence, then the Arian remembered that yesterday evening, while looking for Shion, the impulsive and impatient Kiki went forward to open the door of the Patriarch's office with the purpose of meeting with him, but Mu managed to stop him telekinetically just in time.

 

Without intention, they heard a snippet of conversation between the goddess and the Patriarch regarding the mission without fulfilling that they left pending, and later they moved away a little from the door to give privacy to the goddess and the commander-in-chief of her order.

 

Pondering Athena's words, the ram concluded that one of the tasks he needed to settle in this life was to complete his disciple's training, implying also other obligations of a knight, such like helping and protecting the humanity of the injustices and natural disasters.

 

He threw a glance at his neighbor and wondered what might be the target delayed for the Brazilian.

 

"Aldebaran, do you have some purpose to fulfill now that we live in relative peace?" asks the Arian very slowly, knowing the importance of this topic.

 

The Bull looks at him considering the question for a moment, and with a small smile on his lips he confesses:

 

"I always thought that serving our goddess was everything that my heart could wish for, but there is another thing that I would like to have: my own family." The Brazilian acknowledges it with a sweet smile.

 

Mu is was a little surprised by the quick and concrete response he got from the guardian of the second temple, but soon he visualized it clearly in his mind. Aldebaran would be a good father and a faithful partner.

 

Before expressing his good wishes for Aldebaran, Mu was interrupted by the arrival of a little lemurian, who rubbed his face, and ended his intrusion with a prolonged yawning.

 

Mu smiled and greeted him; the child corresponded between suppressed gasps.

 

Aldebaran extended his hand to caress the child's hair with a little force, but without hurting him. This way Kiki seemed to awake more and took the wrist of the Taurus Saint with his two hands, trying to move the big hand off of his head, but failing without separating it even one centimeter, complaining about the maltreatment between giggles.

 

Meanwhile Mu had gotten up of his place and had served a plate for the kid who now had been released by the Brazilian and climbed over the shoulders of the golden bull applying the same punishment to the hair of the saint.

 

"Kiki, please leave Aldebaran alone and sit down to eat" reprimanded him the older Arian, but his words didn't express anger. He added: "I prepared Gundain for you."

 

The boy cried out in joy and Aldebaran placed it gently on the ground, while laughing loudly.

 

"Before you start, young man, you need to wash your hands." Mu said.

 

"But I already washed them, I went to the bathroom before coming here," said Kiki and immediately stands still remembering something and running out of the kitchen.

 

"Hey, where are you going?" shouts the ram before exchanging questioning looks with his neighbor, who only manages to lift a shoulder in ignorance.

 

"I'll be right back!" the little apprentice shouted in response.

 

He returned in a heartbeat with a beautiful bouquet of roses in his hands. Then he asks Mu if they have a vase to put them in fresh water. The young Arian filled a bud vase with water, and then places it on the table so the young boy can place the lovely bouquet in.

 

The golden ram interrogates his pupil about that pink flower arrangement, and the child explains that before heading to the bathroom, someone knocked on the door. He had opened and guardian of the twelfth house, Pisces Aphrodite had appeared before him, saying it was an offering made with the hope of being accepted by Mu, and apologized for not delivering it personally to the head of the house, but he was in a hurry and rushed out.

 

The child approached to smell the perfume of the flowers. Mu felt a little apprehension, but noting the action was harmless then had remorse by not demonstrating the same confidence on his comrade in arms.

 

"How beautiful they are", recognizes Aldebaran.

 

"Certainly" it grants the lemurian, before adding: "I am going to give him a piece of _Gundain_ to show my gratitude."

 

"Do you believe he left something similar for me?" the Brazilian is curious.

 

"I guess so, we can go to your house and find out if that's case and then we can go together to Pisces."

 

"Okay. By the way, I plan to bring him _Brigadeiros_ , do you think he'll like them?" questions the Taurus Knight, a little concerned.

 

"Aldebaran, I can assure you that he will love them." Mu smiles, "They are a delight."

 

"Do you have Brigadeiros, Aldebaran?!" Kiki shouted, excited.

 

"Yes, I have a box especially for you, we'll go for it in a while." the little one screams more and rushes to embrace the Athena Saint.

 

"Thanks, thanks, thanks, thanks, thanks, thanks ..." repeated like a mantra the younger Arian.

 

Mu holds back when trying to admonish him and tell him that sweets are not to be eaten all at once, but lets the child have his moment of joy.

 

The ram looked out the window and noticed the rain had stopped. Blue sky peeked through gray clouds and everything seemed freshly washed, with bright colors and he inhales the clean and fresh air of the morning. The Arian raises a little prayer of thanks to their goddess.

 

After all, these are new days and apparently also the start of new friendships.

 

To be continued...

 

* * *

 

A. N.

 _Gundain.-_ It is a type of cake made of barley grains and yeast, plus tsampa (a type of flour), fresh cheese, wild ginseng and brown sugar. This cake is eaten often during the Tibetan New Year.

 _Brigadeiros.-_ Typical sweets that are prepared with condensed milk, powder chocolate, butter and granulated chocolate.

I hope you enjoyed it! Please leave reviews, complaints, suggestions or congratulations. Virtual brigadeiros are also accepted!


	4. Chapter 4

Fandom: Saint Seiya

Characters: Saga, Kanon, Afrodita

Disclaimer: Saint Seiya and all known prominent figures who appear here are property of Masami Kurumada.

Thanks so much to Marie Solar Knight for being my beta reader in this chapter, you are the best!

Warning: Post Hades Saga. All the recollections of Saga and Kanon that were not explained during the original series are my inventions, if something does not match the canon it’s because I am making worth my right of free will, or that I happened to find it more suitable for my fic.

I updated this fic almost one year ago, in May 2016. My excuse is that I suffered an awful writer’s block. I hope that this chapter isn’t a disappointment for you. I lost the thread of the fanfic, but I trust the next update will be faster. Or else, I’ll finish this fic in 2026 XP.

Recently I received a review of the same fic, on the English translation, and I had a few days of my writing restarted, this review encouraged me moreover to continue. For me it is true that the reviews are nourishment for the imagination and too are desires to continue writing.

Some chapters will be a vignette, that is to say, shorter than the others. Though I think this chapter is slightly longer (3338 words).

The parts written in italics are memories.

 

* * *

  
 

_"There is no friend as a brother, nor any enemy as a brother ", - Persian proverb_

 

* * *

 

 

_At first, when they were young boys, Saga and Kanon were everything what they had in their lives. Since they were twin brothers, they were united from the day they were born. There was not a day when they were away from each other. They became orphans after a few months they were born and without close relatives who could take care of them; the circumstances united them even more._

_In the orphanage where they lived their first years of life back in Greece, their caregivers recognized almost immediately the intelligence and creativity_ _that the little brothers were demonstrating_ _. Before they could speak, they created a "language" and communicated with each other in that semantic. When they grew up and learned words in Greek, they were able to converse with the others, but for them it was a delight to have their particular fraternal dialect that no one else understood._

 

_Since both were blond, blue-eyed, and similar in complexion, they could only be distinguished by being side by side and watching them closely. They also had a great deal of fun whenever they confused the other children when they exchanged identities. They were experts in the art of deception._

 

_One day, someone came to the orphanage to adopt the brothers, the procedures were fast and without any problem, since that person was the Patriarch of the Sanctuary dedicated to the goddess Athena, Shion of Jamir, the old Aries Knight. The head of the Athenian order had been feeling a powerful cosmo for months, long before he found the orphanage. The man was surprised to learn that the owner of such power was a small child and that he also had a twin brother. He reasoned that he could not leave behind the only family that the aspiring saint of the goddess Athena had._

 

_Saga trained to become the next Gemini’s Temple Saint. Kanon was not surprised that his brother was the chosen one, since he had always admired him. But that was also the time when the dark side of the younger child was manifested. That was the decisive time that marked the difference in their lives and that led to their terrible separation._

 

_No one could predict that anything related to twins would be split in two. They were two minds living in the same person, two paths, two destinies marked by the inner struggle of good and evil._

 

***********

 

_Kanon realized quite early that the only thing that was permanent in the world was his brother. He had no parents, no home, and no lasting friendships._

 

_After his adoption and when Saga got the Gemini’s cloth, the younger brother began to notice an affectation in his ability to think clearly, to control his emotions, sometimes he felt a great anger and he was scared of the consequences that could have if he let loose it on someone else. Saga sporadically witnessed these changes in his brother when he saw him act without congruence between what he said and what he did or in his strange indecisions. One day, Kanon confessed to him with a shaken expression that his mind seemed to him like a huge labyrinth, which he feared to be lost in it one day and never come out. The Athena Saint felt so helpless, so sad that he was absorbed in seeking any solution to his brother's problem by consulting books in the patriarch's library. He believed his duty and responsibility as the elder brother was to help him. There was a part that feared he could suffer the same condition._

 

_Kanon's fight with his evil side, his mental illness, was intense and in the end he didn’t win that battle. His twin witnessed the change in his personality, his outbursts of anger and laughter without reason or at times inappropriate, all that overwhelmed him but he endured it in solitude._

 

_When he went on missions around the world he had a permanent concern, the patriarch never heard of his problems, because Saga never trusted anyone in his anguish. He knew Aioros, the Sagittarius Knight, who considered him his friend, but he had the responsibility of rising and training his younger brother, Aioria, who was aspiring to Leo's cloth. He understood Sagittarius perfectly, since they shared the duties of being an older brother. Later, different saints from all corners of the planet came to the Sanctuary, but none of them approached for friendship or companionship. He was seen as one of the first golden saints of the current era, someone whom they considered a model to imitate._

 

_The Gemini’s saint was respected and admired by the Athenian order and by the people close to the Greek Sanctuary. He was a candidate, along with Aioros, to replace the high priest because of his kind and fair character, but in the end Shion_ _inclined towards_ _Aioros and proclaimed him as new high priest when the Arian realized the wickedness hidden within the Saga’s heart. The Saint of the temple of the twins accepted the patriarchal election and promised to help the Sagittarian with the functions of the Sanctuary._

 

_Before that decision was made public, Kanon had a crucial and long-term crisis. At that moment he proposed his brother to join him against the sanctuary, but the golden knight refused. Saga could not bear to see Kanon so different, watching how his brother perceived reality in a distorted way frightened him, so he resolved to lock his brother in the prison at Sunion Cape. It was a cell that was embedded in the very rock of the promontory; it was an inhuman punishment, since it could be flooded by the waters of the Aegean Sea at high tide._

 

_Although Saga's reasoning and judgment prevented him from noticing that same desire within himself and expressing it openly, he did not reach a decision to help him in any way because he would find himself guilty of the same crime. But after a while the saint of the third house recognized himself in his younger brother’s immoral behavior and came to feel the same his brother once confessed to him in despair._

 

_S_ _ending his brother to his death deeply disrupted Saga and this was aggravated until the day he seized power in the Sanctuary by assassinating the supreme leader. His mind believed that having absolute power over all mortals in this world it would fill the void that had left Kanon's separation in his heart._

_His life was transformed into an alien world, and anger arose against it, which originated from feeling hurt. He spent a lot of time in his temple_ _searching culprits_ _. This emotion was accompanied by aggressive behavior with the environment and he eventually fell in a terrible desperation. It was the period where he sent his personal assassins to execute saints of bronze and silver faithful to Athena who were scattered all over the planet. He blackmailed the golden saints and seduced them with the promise of power, luxuries and richness, or by using the technique of Imperial Satan when someone doubted his orders. Thus was the author of the greatest infidelity to the goddess_ _who swore to protect, from_ _within the sacred Sanctuary._

_Although people at the foot of the Sanctuary continued to praise and thank him in a thousand ways for their protection, Saga never felt worthy of such recognition. It was all part of his master plan. To achieve his goals it was necessary to have a perfect facade._

_But all he really wanted was to go back to the long-gone days where they were only Saga and Kanon, back to his little family. He spent sleepless nights wondering what could have been done to change their situation, and thus avoid the pain that consumed him. He still could not accept what Kanon had done._

_Depression was another phase in his life after Kanon's betrayal. Finally aware of his loss, this awareness was followed by intense crying, lack of appetite and insomnia and then his body and mind weakened. Feelings of sadness, emptiness, loneliness and emotional pain arose. He saw no meaning in living without his twin by his side. Without knowing it, Kanon went through the same thing at the dungeon._

_In his thoughts a fear appeared: to never to get over his brother's departure, to never experience filial love again, preventing him from reaching happiness._

_But sadly Saga never accepted the loss of his brother, leading his mind to follow the same perverse goals by which he condemned his younger brother in Sunion Cape. Living a vicious cycle that altered him painfully._

_Nonetheless, at the end of his life, his goodness defeated the evil side of his heart and he demonstrated the great love that he professed to Athena. It was the love for his goddess that helped him to continue in the fight against Hades, when the same god of the Infernos resurrected him along with other gold and silver saints that died during the Battle of the Twelve Temples._

_***********_

_Sometime after his death, his soul was incarnated in his former body and Saga had to show strength and motivation to take him to the right direction, although later that same soul was condemned for acts against Athena. His life made sense again and was adopting a positive attitude._

_It is was this one-night period when he confronted his twin brother again, and by defeating Kanon in the Gemini's temple he was very proud that his younger brother protected the goddess Athena in an extraordinary way as the proud golden saint of the third Temple. He then realized that his brother had no evil in his heart._

_When they revived again, but now thanks to their beloved goddess, they accepted the end of their lives, one temporary and the other recent, and thus_ _there_ _was no harmful emotional bond, so that a new stage can begin. Just the way it was at first, just the two of them._ _Like a family._

* * *

The twins woke up early, with Saga being the first to do so. When he opened his eyes, he found a mop of blond hair on his chest, feeling a weight on it. His younger brother used his torso as a pillow. Saga smiled and spent five minutes as he decided whether or not to wake his twin up.

 

Saga remembered the previous night, after the golden meeting in the last temple, which was like an ocean of emotions. However, this was nothing compared to the session that followed in the third house where Kanon and him spoke for hours of their different memories during the battles in the Sanctuary and in Hades’ territory. Also, they talked about Kanon’s life as Poseidon’s general, and finally they were so exhausted that they were overcome by drowsiness in the lounger where they sat down to confess, to laugh, to weep and to pardon, accompanying their talk with glasses of wine and water.

 

Their minds still worked the same as when they were children, they were connected, and it was something very familiar, like coming home after a long trip.

 

The last thing Saga remembered was that they were united in a hug, in the large armchair of the temple’s main hall feeling a great relief and peace. Although he woke up with some irritation in his throat and eyes, he was happy.

 

While he was thinking of this, a golden knight came calling the Gemini door with his cosmo; it was the guardian of the twelfth house, the Swedish Aphrodite of Pisces.

 

Saga hurried to meet the visitor and got up from his place in the sofa, the former Marina was startled, confused and a little dizzy, but when he felt the presence on the front of the temple he calmed down.

 

"What does Aphrodite want so early?" asked the young man as he rubbed his eyes with his hand.

"I don’t know," Saga replied, smiling as he watched his brother make a gesture that reminded him of other times, and looking at the clock on the wall added, "But it's not as early as you think."

 

Kanon checked his brother's assurance and was surprised at the certainty of his words, made a grimace of disgust, then in an instant remembered last night and when he looked at his twin again he smiled and with a less discreet gesture, with some complicity in his eyes confirmed: "You are completely right.”

 

Saga nodded, then remembered that someone was at their door and came out to meet him; Kanon stretched as he rose from his seat and followed his older brother. He was curious to see the reason for the visit of the Pisces Saint.

 

Aphrodite looked radiant, his two arms busy with bouquets of roses, each with a combination of white roses and rainbow sorbet roses as the foundation.

 

The morning was somewhat cloudy and the cold atmosphere announcing a downpour.

 

"Hello, Saga," said the guardian of the golden fish's house, and after some hesitation he continued, "Or are you Kanon?"

 

"I am Saga," said the older man with a small smile.

 

Aphrodite’s eyes grew wide and said: "I've never seen you smile like that."

 

At that moment Kanon appeared in front of the Swede and looked curiously at his brother. Then, Kanon laughed loudly and giving him a pat on the shoulder, says to Aphrodite:

 

"I can tell that you don’t know him well enough" said the former Marina with a wink.

 

The older Gemini slightly blushed. That was true, Saga always walked away from his peers, for the wrong reasons, and that prevented him from forming any healthy emotional connection. The only bonds he established were harmful to both parties, with Aphrodite, Deathmask and Shura, who were the only ones to know that the Saint’s Patriarch was usurped by an unfaithful knight and they supported him for different reasons. Though, all of them were seduced by his extraordinary eloquence, for his mastery in convincing people.

 

Kanon never made friends with any saint of the Sanctuary; he just hid as Saga’s shadow. When someone saw him they always thought he was the older brother, at first this irritated him, and later he did not even bother to get them out of his mistake.

 

The Swede recovers quickly and begins: "Well, I am here to greet you and give you some small presents" while saying this, he offered them the flowers.

 

The brothers took the beautiful gifts in their arms and appreciate the exquisite scent of roses, thankful for the great kindness of Aphrodite.

 

"Do you want to come in for a drink?" Saga asked.

 

"Thank you, but I have to go now," the Swede said with a surprised smile.

 

"Just a cup of tea or coffee," Kanon insisted, "I won’t take long"

 

The golden fish guardian refuses again: "It will be another day, I'm late for a meeting" then added, "But if the invitation is still standing, I'll visit you early tomorrow," he says as he walks away.

 

"Of course, Aphrodite, you will always be welcomed in this house." He declared, but before he closed the door of Gemini he heard: "You should smile more often, Saga," which made Kanon laugh.

 

Saga was surprised to feel a bit of sadness when Aphrodite did not accept his invitation. The older Geminian longed to fill the gap that his soul had by separating from his brother, pretending to complete his spirit with power and richness. But what he really needed was to have a close friend.

 

The older twin was afraid that one day he would fall back into his evil character, that it would present it any day, and that no one would notice it. Although his brother was now with him and the two had finally demonstrated their loyalty to the goddess of wisdom.

 

"What are you thinking about?" asked the former Marina with curiosity, while they look for vases to put the roses.

 

He was willing to approach the other Knights, he knew that it would be difficult to gain their confidence, but that would make it sure that any of them noticed any change in his personality. He will follow the example of Aphrodite, who showed great courage in delivering his presents.

 

He didn’t want to make the same mistake again, moving away from everyone when he needed help. Saga was willing to envision more his positive side, starting with his comrades in arms to the humblest servant of the Sanctuary, and to make an echo to find in his being something similar. Make an examination of those behaviors, feelings or actions that values all of these people and find them within him.

 

"I think we should prepare to welcome Aphrodite tomorrow as he deserves, don’t you think, Kanon?"

 

Thus he would never again feel the cold and overwhelming solitude of the supreme power, provoked by him in disdain and distrust of everyone.

 

"Yes, we have to plan a good breakfast," he agrees as he finds a huge white vase in a large closet.

 

"Look, Saga, it's perfect, we'll accommodate the two bouquets here," the older brother nodded.

 

While Kanon filled the beautiful vase with water, his brother warned him to be very careful.

 

"I'm not going to break it," complains the younger of the twins as they begin to place the flowers in the container.

 

"I didn’t mean that, I mean I don’t want you to get hurt," says Saga.

 

"Oh"

 

Witnessing the moment of leaving a Kanon without words is a memorable occasion. Saga treasured this feat. However, the younger of them recovers from his fleeting silence almost immediately.

 

"But look. How splendid! Aphrodite has good taste," he says admiringly.

 

On a coffee table in the room, the big bunch of flowers was displayed in its entire splendor. It was perfect, as Kanon had stated before. The way the two bouquets were integrated into an exquisite piece was to marvel.

 

Studying the unity with care, Saga had never appreciated the saint of Pisces before this day, and he swore to perceive in his fellow companions the qualities which during his first life he minimized or completely ignored. He decided to learn from them and integrate it into his character. He was sure to feel liberated, for it would no longer be a solitary battle to avoid negative feelings.

 

He didn’t know if everyone would be as friendly and open as Aphrodite, but he would try, he would give his best.

 

With this in mind, wanting to start the new day, and a new life, he assures his brother:

 

"That's right, even his name suggests it. Aesthetic of Aphrodite is enviable." Saga smiles.

 

Kanon merely lifted his eyebrows, and without saying anything, went to the kitchen, releasing a loud yawn.

 

"We're going to have breakfast, or lunch. Then we go to the village to buy what is necessary for breakfast tomorrow, what do you think?" The youngest asks.

 

"Well said," Saga replies, his mental state reflected tranquility.

 

"I had not seen you so happy since before..." ex-Marina hesitated as he took food from the cupboard "well, you know"

 

"Yes, I know, I feel as if I had returned to the time when we were children, but with the experience of an old man," sighs Saga with a small smile still drawn on his face.

 

"Yes, I understand. Well, you're the oldest, so you're the old man" Kanon says slyly, feigning anger.

 

"For five minutes, Kanon, I'm only five minutes older than you," he replies patronizingly.

 

He missed Kanon, he was the only one who knew him well, and he was the only person Saga knew well. He knew his faults and virtues as his own. They were family.

 

He thanked the goddess for giving them the opportunity to recover their family, and requested her with all his heart to have the courage and be worth to do the same with the other members of the Athenian order.

 

 

To be continued...

 

 

* * *

 

(1) I think I wrote too much about the past, or the "new" was not as extensive as I would have liked.

 

(2) When I was writing the fic I was left with doubts about the permission of the goldies so that someone else could pass by his house. If the owner is not there, it can be crossed without any problem, but if for example, they arrive from a trip at dawn and the owner of the house is asleep, do they wake him up? Do they have permission from the Patriarch as a safe-conduct? Or imagine if DM comes drunk late at night, assuming he does not have permission, then how would he cross the first three houses? I can imagine him hanging from four drones flying above the houses.

 


	5. Chapter 5

Fandom: Saint Seiya

Characters: Deathmask, Shura, Aphrodite, Aioria.

Disclaimer: Saint Seiya and all known characters that appear here are owned by Masami Kurumada.

Warning: Post Hades Saga.

 

Chapter dedicated to kazuchii, Sindrashar, Shiary, Paul_C_Leigh, Keiko86chan, Kanerva for their kudos, and especially to my beta Solar Knight Marie, thank you so much for your support. Your reviews make me realize that you all like what I write, and in case I lack continuity or for you to share your perspectives of the fic, so please review.

 

* * *

 

 

Pisces Aphrodite was euphoric and he had plans to carry out immediately. Everything seemed like a dream, after the goddess Athena’s speech at the end of the golden meeting, almost everyone had calmed down their personal impressions, some of them were of great astonishment, and others meant strong commotions for their souls.

 

After hours of sharing experiences, emotions or just being alive again in the company of their colleagues, the golden saints who stood near the entrance of the Patriarch's temple could hear the laughter of Aldebaran and Kanon, compared to them Saga was more discreet, as they went down to their homes. A few minutes later the Pisces’ guardian headed to his temple accompanied by Cancer Deathmask and Capricorn Shura. He said goodbye to both of them when he reached the entrance of his house with a very strong hug, assuring them that he would visit them later.

 

The Swedish didn’t know how long the goddess would stay in the Sanctuary, so he hastened to create and then deliver personally in the thirteenth temple the flower arrangements for the goddess Athena and for the patriarch Shion. Minutes before leaving his temple, Aries Mu had passed through there, with his disciple, little Kiki.

 

When he arrived at the temple of the supreme head of the Athenian Order, Shion explained to him that the Japanese heiress had left a moment ago, but in her name the patriarch thanked Aphrodite for his courtesy and pointed out that he would place the bouquet on the altar devoted to her. He explained that the goddess was capable of knowing who gave her some offering and that she would send him some sign of appreciation.

 

Aphrodite was disappointed of not to offer personally the flower arrangement to Athena, but with the comforting words from his superior he accepted his fate without much regret.

 

He went to his residence with a slow pace. He had close objectives to be carried out as soon as possible, but allowed himself to enjoy the weather; the landscape offered a spectacular view from the top of the mountain. In the distance, the last lights of the day were coming to an end, and on the firmament more stars began to be distinguished, and then he saw with clarity, with each of his five senses that he perceived everything intensely.

 

He was aware of his breathing, he could even count the beatings of his heart, his skin was caressed by the fresh wind that played with his hair and ruffled the perfume of roses from his garden. He opened his arms and it made him want to laugh, he couldn’t hold it, initially was a murmur, although it increased slowly to become a boisterous laughter. Tears ran down his cheeks and he thanked life, his goddess, and the world for his happiness.

 

* * *

 

The saint of the fourth house was somewhat disconcerted when his companion passed by the temple he was in charge of protecting. After saying goodbye to Aphrodite, the Cancerian would accompany the Spaniard to the tenth house, say goodbye to him and see him until the next day, or so he believed.

 

Deathmask separated from Shura at the entrance of Capricorn, but the Spaniard didn’t stop, and he continued descending the steps that led to the ninth temple. Cancer went behind him, confused but without saying a word, after a while of pondering about the matter he deduced that the Spaniard wouldn’t want to meet Aioros and Aioria as they passed through his temple to their respective houses in the Sanctuary. The black-haired man had a clear reconciliation with the elder of the Greek brothers, but the subject with Leo's saint had not been completely settled.

 

The Italian thought with a hint of sarcasm that Shura was lucky to have a friend whose temple was a place below the fifth house. Although that friend felt dejected by the Spanish’s attitude for not trusting him. In the end he was a C _apriciournus_ in every bit. For the Italian it was nonsense, but when the Iberian was nervous he became incongruous and stubborn.

 

They crossed the other residences in complete silence and without mishaps since their respective owners weren’t in each of the temples.

 

In the Cancer temple, his guardian invited him to come in and asked if he wanted something to drink. The black haired man shook his head and when he finally stopped in front of a long sofa the Iberian dropped his body heavily on the soft seat.

 

"Make yourself at home," the host declared without looking at the Spanish and added: "I'll be right back." He left without waiting for an answer.

 

The Italian went into his private rooms to store the armor of the golden Crab. He paused for a moment, looking at the Pandora Box, meditating a little on the occasion when the armor rejected him as his rightful owner. When he awoke in the patriarch's living room and found himself clothed in it again, he felt a great relief, it meant that he was once again worthy of being a warrior of the goddess Athena.

 

With a smile that was softly drawn on his face, he dressed and took some training clothes for his guest; he at least could try to convince him to do more than brood over his unfounded fears.

 

Deathmask threw the clothes at his guest who caught them with a quick movement. The Italian went to the table that was equipped to prepare drinks. He didn’t find the bottles that he used to save but there was a red wine and he served enough of it in two glasses to start the evening. His temple was cool; he also noted that the faces on the walls and floor of the fourth house had disappeared.

 

Shura needed to distract himself and needed to vent; the drink would help him relax and hoped it would also encourage him to talk about his concerns.

 

When the Latino turned to his companion, he had already changed his clothes and Pandora Box rested on the side of the furniture. Deathmask came over to deposit his guest's glass and the bottle on the coffee table.

 

Before the Italian began to speak, they felt a cosmo asking permission to cross the house. Cancer answered through the same way, he was consenting to the request.

 

"With the permission granted, Cancer Knight," the voice of the golden ram, Aries Mu, was heard, appearing at the room’s door. The young Tibetan was accompanied by his pupil.

 

Deathmask just nodded and they walked through the temple, the little apprentice walked carefree with his arms up and hands clasped at the nape of his neck, watching everything, finally facing the owner of the house, smiling lightly. The Italian suddenly exhaled the air in his lungs, he hadn’t noticed that he had caught his breath, his mouth twisted into a half smile and his previous discomfort vanished.

 

"Good evening," they politely uttered their goodbyes at the front door of the house before closing it.

 

"Night" answered the Italian. Capricorn barely whispered: "Rest well" in a distracted way.

 

This interruption reminded the house owner how overwhelming it had been for his psyche meeting at the patriarch's hall. He settled himself in the armchair in front of Shura, lifted his glass of wine and shouted: " _Salute!_ " with this toast he hoped at least to encourage the Iberian to drink a little, the Italian took a sip of his drink and after confirming its quality, he finished it in three gulps.

 

As he poured more alcohol he saw Shura give small libations to his glass with his eyes fixed on some immaterial point.

 

 _It will be a long night_ , Deathmask mused somewhat discouraged by the silence of his companion, and let out a long sigh. He wanted to smoke a cigarette, but when he looked for clothes in his room he didn’t see any packets there. Apparently her goddess believed that it was convenient to keep them away from bad habits. He thought she was very perceptive now that literally all her golden knights, just as the patriarch, were about to start a new life.

 

Then, suddenly, the Spaniard looked him in the eye, he expressed in his gaze and also with words full of emotion that the Italian couldn’t identify: "Thank you, Angelo."

 

* * *

 

Obviously Deathmask was not his real name, but he liked that alias because he forged it himself. Collecting masks of the deceased during their missions wasn’t very orthodox on their part, taking into account also that most of them there were innocent victims, who were surprised by the attacks against the enemies to the Sanctuary. The Cancerian regarded them as civilian casualties in war; these were unavoidable events, they were the norm in any warlike conflict.

 

The Italian was excellent in his technique of combat, he felt that carrying out his function as a golden knight was the right thing to do, that no matter what others said, things such as that he was cruel, and so on. The Italian considered that with that power he acquired confidence, therefore it couldn’t be ignored.

 

The Cancer temple didn’t possess his personal touch when he was assigned to its custody. It was for this reason that he began collecting faces, they were something he obtained for himself, and it had another purpose: his decoration disturbed anyone who dared to enter his temple; it appeared like a macabre exhibition that was permanently displayed. He contemplated that this was the best way to dispel any threat to the Shrine, or rather to the usurping patriarch.

 

Those visages reminded him that the best option was to be on the side of the powerful, since just as it had occurred to those people, he could lose his life at any moment if he associated himself with the weak.

 

Furthermore, for that reason he was afraid to have someone who was loved by his side, because it would be a weakness, because it is when he really would have someone valuable that could possibly lose.

 

That is why he perfectly understood the behavior of the Hispanic. According to the reasoning of the Cancerian what Shura tried to do was to disconnect emotionally from everyone around him, even from his close friends.

 

When the Italian left the world of the living in his fight against the Dragon Shiryu, the fourth house regained a calm air as the faces and the gloomy atmosphere that covered the building disappeared, nevertheless the Italian would never forget the meaning it had for him to have those mortuary masks.

 

In the room of the golden Crab, his owner noticed that Shura restarted his mental infatuation, isolating himself from the world around him, therefore the Cancerian returned to serve himself more wine, while he tasted his glass and settled in his seat he began to remember the earlier times.

 

**************

_One day, when he was still young, Deathmask arrived from a mission and climbed the temples, some without a guardian, to give the Patriarch an oral report on the events that took place during his assignment._

_As he walked through the temple of Capricorn, he heard a voice whispering. The newcomer was a curious boy, wanted to know who it was, most likely it was the owner of the house. The Spaniard had been too reserved lately, and the Italian wanted to frighten him. He preferred to see him with a different expression than the seriousness always present on his face even for a moment and then he would see him angry. He was getting tired of his gloomy face. Shura, after fulfilling the difficult task entrusted to him by the patriarch, eliminating the supposed traitor of the Sanctuary, failed to show any positive emotion._

_The Cancerian supposed that if the dark-haired child was accompanied it was almost certain that it was Aphrodite; they three understood each other marvelously. Well, that was even better, so he would frighten them both._

_The Italian hid his cosmo and tiptoed, pausing in front of the door of an inner courtyard. He heard the whispers getting louder, and spying, he saw Shura sitting on a marble bench, with no one accompanying him, he continued murmuring and for a moment the owner of the fourth house was frightened: he believed he was witnessing his friend losing his mind._

_Then there was barely a soft mewing, when he realized what was happening, he actually felt his soul return to his body. In the lap of the Spaniard was a bundle that moved desperately. Shura spoke to it quietly, caressing it to calm it down and made it eat the food he supplied with a dropper; beside him he reserved a cup of warm milk._

_The Cancerian noticed Shura’s features, it wasn’t the impassive face he had shown the others, that face now reflected certain sweetness. The Italian left the house believing he had seen something he shouldn’t. He didn’t want to disturb the Spaniard because the Capricorn had found something real and long-lasting that made him changes his attitude._

 

_**************_

 

When he remembered this, the Italian tried to smile but failed. He thought that at least could give him clues to help his friend.

 

An indeterminate time passed for him, during which they almost finished the bottle of wine, although the Italian was the one that poured more into his cup, approximately double of what Shura drank.

 

Suddenly he felt very tired and before going to sleep, Deathmask raised a prayer to Athena, something he had stopped doing for a long time, asking for patience to complete his reintegration to the golden order. He aspired to possess Shura's bravery and Aphrodite's affability, even if it was a small part of what his friends had recently demonstrated.

 

* * *

 

"Oh my goodness, may it stop raining, please!" Shouted a golden knight at his window, catching a sight of the outside where it downpour over the whole region. The Pisces saint was up early and already had a light breakfast.

 

The Swedish had two activities in mind: 1) Hand out the bouquets of roses he prepared a day before and 2) That his hair would not suffer the effects of the horrible humidity in the environment.

 

Some members of the service staff who took care of his temple helped him prepare and then place the bouquets in large baskets, in order not to mistreat the flowers. When they finished, the blonde sighed and made a mental note to thank them with something more than flowers. He thought of buying a large cake to share or else give them bags of candy, those two seemed like a good idea.

 

Remembering the previous day, he sighed once more, seeing the rain fall outside and he encouraged himself saying: "Better now than later, even if I suffer this hindrance, we have many special deliveries to make."

 

He finished arranging his hairstyle as best as he could and went out to do his part for the day, accompanied by some young men who were part of the aspiring saints of the Sanctuary.

 

* * *

 

Elsewhere in the Sanctuary, in the kitchen of the fourth temple, Shura was preparing a breakfast for two, it was the least he could do to thank the Italian for his hospitality. He had woken up curled up on the sofa and covered by a warm and soft blanket. The Italian was not in the room.

 

When he was serving the food and he was about to call his host, he appeared at the door.

"Good morning," said the Iberian.

 

The owner of the house only emitted a kind of growl that became a big yawn. The night before he hadn’t drunk so much but he was afflicted with a kind of light hangover. He had the hair on his forehead wet because before he had gone to wash his face, he wanted to shake off the drowsiness, headache and thirst he experienced upon awakening. But if his nose did not deceive him, there was fresh coffee waiting for him at the table.

 

"Are you okay?" Shura asked cheerfully.

 

The Italian nodded with a somewhat brusque inclination, which amused the saint of the tenth house even more.

 

For Deathmask the tiring was already overcome, the detestable wait ended, patience wasn’t part of their qualities. Now the Spaniard wanted to talk. _So let's talk_ , the Italian thought, but first he would have coffee with milk that smelled delicious. It would not hurt to taste the food in front of him; it was a good portion of _tortilla de patatas_.

 

After savoring a couple of mouthfuls, he declared in a hoarse voice, "It's great, thank you for breakfast," to retaliate with the Iberian of the annoyance he suffered added immediately: "You are ready to get married, goat," he was half joking.

 

Shura completely ignored the last part, knew that he owed an apology to the Cancerian and was willing to pay by tolerating the impertinence of his colleague for the inconvenience caused.

 

"Thank you for the accommodation, I should have asked permission in advance and not impose myself as I did."

 

They continued to eat breakfast by mentioning the weather and trivial things in the conversation. When Deathmask was finishing the second ration, he observed that the Iberian was about to consume his entire dish as well. He hurried to begin the pending talk he had with the black-haired young.

 

"You finished?" Shura asked as he got up on his feet and picked up both of their dishes to wash. The Cancerian did not bother to protest and passed him the china he used, before leaving the kitchen to sit in the living room.

 

When the Spaniard entered that room he did not perceive the Italian at first sight, the room was shrouded in shadows because the curtains were closed.

 

"Hey," the Italian called quietly. When the Spaniard located the Cancerian, he indicated an armchair with a gesture and urged, "Take a seat."

Shura nodded, but before he obeyed, he walked to the window and pull back the curtain to let in a little more light, outside it was still dimly lit because the sky was covered with gray clouds that let fall a lighter rain accompanied by thunder.

 

Then the Spaniard took his seat, his host cleared his throat a little and started to speak.

 

"First of all, I want to clarify that I am not throwing you out of my temple. What I want to say is: you are welcome to stay as long as you want in my house, but you cannot stay here and wait ... other saints don’t cross over here any minute. "

 

One thing that characterized Shura once he’s out of his reverie was how expressive his face could be when he wasn’t being elusive or cautious. The face of the Spaniard showed absolute confusion.

 

"Weren’t you hiding from Aioria?" the Cancer knight asked with surprise as he saw the reaction of his companion.

 

"No," Shura replied. "I'm not avoiding anyone." With a tone of sadness he explained: "Yesterday, when I stepped on the floor of the Capricorn temple I felt that I no longer deserved to live in that place, I had an imperative need to get out of there."

 

In his opinion, the Spaniard gave up the most important assignment: that of protecting his goddess, his pride was wounded. Some Bronze knights had replaced him, just children, but they sacrificed everything to help the incarnation of the goddess, proving that they were more worthy of the title of Saints of Athena than him. Now he had no clear purpose in this new life.

 

"I don’t believe that the goddess Athena decided to revive us without a purpose," the Italian seemed to read the mind of the Hispanic at the moment that he began to sink into his thoughts again.

 

Upon hearing the words of his host, they caught his full attention.

 

The protector of the fourth house continued: "There are many things you can do besides belonging to the personal guard of Athena, there is Shion, who also needs protection when he needs to leave the Sanctuary, there are the missions of the Sanctuary; to continue guarding our assigned temples, in short, many things" he enlisted with agitated gestures, seeking a reason for his friend to reconsider, so that he had motives and regained his hurt dignity.

 

Shura didn’t seem being soothed or comforted. At that moment the Italian face lit up and leaning forward said: "You can be in charge of one apprentice, or several."

 

"Do you think I could take care of the future Athena’s knights?" It was a huge responsibility after all.

 

"I remember clearly that you helped me with the damn Greek language, and you had enough patience. You are a good teacher. "

 

"It's just that you were a good student." He was contradicted by the tenth temple’s knight.

 

The Italian was frustrated in making him understand his argument, turning his eyes to the sky he complains dramatically: "Shura, are you able to accept a compliment without question?"

 

The Spaniard laughs at his friend's theatrical ability, raising his hands in a conciliatory gesture.

 

"If my new role is to help continue the legacy of the order, then I’m willing to accept that task ... or whatever the patriarch assigns me." The Iberian declares.

 

 _Grazie mille_ , _Athena_ , the saint of Cancer raised the goddess her complacency.

 

Then a well-known cosmo appeared at the front door, asking permission from the owner to enter the residence. The Italian goes to the door and welcomes his Swedish friend who carries some huge bouquets of flowers that he holds with difficulty.

 

"Good morning, Deathmask." He greets him with a smile and immediately approaches the arrangement on his right, saying: "For you." The gift offered is a large bouquet of flowers in pink tones.

 

Aphrodite handed the other bouquet to Shura, composed mainly of purple roses; both arrangements were held in white ribbons. The Capricorn knight only tries to say, equally moved: "Thank you, Aphrodite"

 

"I didn’t find you at your house, so I suspected you were here, Shura."

 

"Yes, Deathmask did me the favor of putting up with me for a while."

 

Meanwhile, the Italian was still fixed to the side of the door, astonished, open-mouthed.

 

"Don’t tell me that they had never given you flowers before," the blond doubted when he noticed Cancer’s state of commotion.

 

"Of course not! That's from ...!" Comes out of his stupor the Italian to, according to him, defend his honor.

 

"Hey, watch what you're going to say ...!" the Pisces saint interrupted, pointing at him with his index finger.

 

"Oh _Mia dea_ , you don’t know what I was going to say!" He was gesticulating violently with his free arm.

 

"No, but I know you and I can imagine!" Aphrodite narrows her eyes.

 

"Then don’t imagine anything!" the owner of the house shouts.

 

The unexpected, humorous discussion in the view of the Spaniard made him laugh, discreetly, as he didn’t want to make his friends angry, but quickly developed into little chuckles.

 

The others stop their quarrel by perceiving the joy of the Hispanic, to observe him better.

 

Shura's features lit up with a radiant smile, Deathmask had missed him, to see that gesture in his friend's face reminded him of happy times.

 

"Don’t argue, please," says the Spanish more controlled. "I missed you a lot."

 

The other two look at each other for a moment and smile openly. _All forgotten then_ , the Italian reconsidered.

 

The Cancer saint closes the main door and approaches the Spaniard giving suspicious looks to both arrangements, not showing much enthusiasm yet.

 

"Eh, they're very ... pretty" praises the Capricorn with hesitation, and then elbows the Italian to say something.

 

"Mmh? Oh, thank you," the Italian says grudgingly.

 

Then Aphrodite takes a camera out of nowhere. He announces that he wants a remembrance of them with the bouquets while looking through the viewfinder to focus on the silhouettes of his companions, but before pressing the trigger the others move fast.

 

"NOOO!" They scream in unison and with terrified faces. Deathmask even tries to snatch the camera.

 

"Don’t shout, I'm not going to force you," says the Swedish, putting the camera out of reach of the Italian. "But then you owe me one, do you accept my invitation to dine at the Pisces temple?" He says with an affected pout.

 

"Ah, of course I do." "Yes, Aphrodite," the others respond quickly and peacefully.

 

Then the Swedish tells his goodbye to them and the Iberian says that he accompanies him to Capricorn, but the blonde tells him that before going to his house he will distribute the last bouquets in the three remaining temples. Shura offers him help to make the deliveries, but the Pisces refuses, assuring him that some apprentices will assist him, but that if he wishes, when he goes back for Cancer, he will accompany him on the ascent to his houses, the Spaniard willingly accepts.

 

"I'll be back, I won’t be long," Aphrodite hurries toward Gemini.

 

Shura walks him to the door. Before he closed it he stood there for a moment to feel the cool breeze of the morning agitating his hair, the air felt clean and moist. It had stopped raining long ago.

 

Deathmask walks away grumbling, yet he shows his concern at wanting to accommodate the flowers in a vase, if he remembered well, he had seen one in a corner of the room.

 

 _C'è_ , the Italian found the vase and went to the kitchen to fill it with fresh water. When he returned to the living room, he placed it on the coffee table and as he settled the bouquet his guest approached to keep him company.

 

They talked for a while about what each of them would bring to dinner with Aphrodite and agreed upon the time Deathmask will pass through the Capricorn temple before ascending to the golden fish house.

 

Soon Aphrodite returns from his gentle mission.

 

"Have you had breakfast?" Shura asks the newcomer. "I prepared something for Deathmask and me, but I think I went too far and now there's a lot of food."

 

"Yes, I had breakfast, but thanks for the offer," he reconsiders a moment, then says: "I know, if Deathmask no longer wants more, we can take it."

 

The temple owner makes a gesture with the hand, indicating that they have their approval. The Cancerian hadn’t even figured out if he had more food stored, but seeing that Shura managed to splendidly prepare breakfast, he considered that the pantry was full. They were also invited to dinner.

 

"So, will you lend me some plates to put the food, Deathmask? I'll get them back without delay." Ensure the Capricorn.

 

"Take whatever it is and don’t worry, I that you are going to give them back with some dish that you prepare." Says the Italian smiling and calculates: _Excellent, more prepared food_.

 

When they have everything ready to leave, the Spaniard thanks Deathmask for all his hospitality and wraps him in a warm embrace.

 

The Italian is a little surprised with all the hugging from the day before, but no complaints from his part, he could get used to that with no problem.

 

* * *

 

Shura carries the Pandora Box to his back and the bouquet of flowers in his arms, it really was immense. The Pisces saint helped him with the bowl full of breakfast. They have small talk for a while.

 

As they ascended the steps, near the Leo’s temple, the Capricorn tells the Swede that it didn’t take for him long to deliver the arrangements to the knights of the first houses.

 

"Well, with the twins it was quick, and in Taurus I was greeted by a girl who insisted that I leave the bouquet there, although she had told me that Aldebaran was with Mu, as I was in a hurry I accepted and in Aries I gave the flowers to Kiki, he had that groggy face, I asked about his teacher and he couldn’t tell me if he was already up. I didn’t want to disturb him, and then I came back fast."

 

After this explanation they arrived at the golden lion’s temple, via cosmo both asked permission of the guardian to cross the place, the person who opens the door is the Virgo saint, he invites them to pass saying that Aioria is with his brother preparing the lunch.

 

"Then we’ll hurry," says an uneasy Shura as he heads out, "we don’t want to disturb." It always makes him nervous that Shaka keeps his eyes closed most of the time.

 

"It's no trouble. Shura, Aphrodite, if you wish you can stay for lunch" they run into a very happy Aioros coming out of the kitchen carrying food to the dining room table.

 

The Spanish doesn’t stop to be surprised by the fact that Aioros has revived, and as he remembered him, the same smile, the same cheerful character. He also realizes that despite being almost 15 years old, because it was the age when he fatal wounded him that the Sagittarian was and remains one of the tallest golden saints. He would always see him higher, literally and metaphorically. Unexpectedly, he felt like crying for Aioros’ life that he had taken away, for having abandoned Aioria to his fate, for having betrayed his Goddess. Even though Athena herself had forgiven them, he still didn’t do it. He hoped that forming the new generation of knights would be enough retribution. He blinked quickly and stared down at the floor, embarrassed.

 

"Aphrodite, thank you again for the flowers you gave us, but I see that you have your favorites," Leo Aioria makes his presence noticed, but his voice doesn’t express reproach.

 

In a reflex movement the Hispanic embraces the bouquet tightly.

 

"Yes, that's why we bring this," the Swedish raises the tray with the _tortilla de patatas_. "Is a small gift from Shura."

 

"Is that what smells so good?" Shaka is about to check his assumption.

 

"Yes, that's it", the Swedish hands the china to the owner of the house.

 

"Thank you," the golden lion accepts in surprise.

 

"Then I’ll be going," the Spaniard hurries out of there. "See y-y …, goodbye," he steps up.

 

"See you," Pisces says goodbye in a sweet tone, in compensation for Shura's brusqueness.

 

Outside Aphrodite pursues him climbing the steps and asks the Iberian to calm down, saying he shouldn’t take to heart the jokes of others, that he should trust them more, that Aioria said that because he feels at ease with them as companions. In Pisces’ opinion, the lion only was being friendly. Shura continues to climb the steps towards Virgo without seeming to hear this.

 

Then the Capricorn stops suddenly and the Swede reaches him.

 

"It isn’t that, Aphrodite," says the tenth temple’s owner with his eyes lowered and continues: "is that I understood the reason why I was avoiding Aioria all those years", says the Spaniard most agitated.

 

"I always thought it was because he was the brother of the supposed traitor," confesses the black-haired man, "but my mistake was to judge him for what someone else did," and he explains: "My real motive was that I didn’t want to see every day Aioros’ face in him, they are very similar physically and also in his kind and cheerful nature, because I would always doubt the validity of my actions when murdering the Sagittarius golden knight."

 

Then the cry of Leo's guardian is heard a little further down: "Wait, please."

 

Aioria stops a few steps before. With a hand caressing the nape of the neck and his gaze at the ground asks Shura to forgive him for having bothered him, since it wasn’t his intention. However for the Capricorn, Leo's had no fault and so let him know it.

 

Shura saw him again as the five-year-old boy who once apologized for some mischief that played him in complicity with Milo, being forced by the golden archer to ask for forgiveness.

 

The Spaniard went down a step to place his hand on Aioria’s blonde hair, as when they were children and the little five-year-old Aioria sobbed with shame and sadness because he had made the Iberian angry and believed he lost his affection or respect in his innocent imagination.

 

The golden lion squeezes his eyelids for a moment, then opens them and cast a damp look ahead and he see Shura smile at him the way he remembered. Aioria gives back the first genuine smile that sees the Capricorn dedicated to him in a long time.

 

The Spaniard acknowledges that Deathmask was right in assuming that he was avoiding the Leo knight in some way.

 

* * *

 

Aphrodite was received at the entrance of his temple by a young apprentice; he informed him that he had gone to deliver a package he received during his absence. He thanked the boy and instructed him to tell his partners, who helped the golden saint earlier, to pass by his temple at sunset.

 

Upon entering the room, on a little table was waiting for him what they shipped. It wasn’t really a single pack; they were several different sizes and shapes within a larger one that contained them.

 

Stunned, he began to open a box largest than most, recognizing the contents inside the case his eyes shone with emotion.

 

From the corner of his eye he discovered an envelope and inside a little card, the accompanying note said: Thank you for your beautiful bouquet of flowers, Aphrodite ... I hope you enjoy this gift ... With affection, Saori Kido.

 

* * *

 

The evening at the temple of Aphrodite with his two best friends was a success. They spent hours remembering the pranks, missions, the night they pretend being Hades’ specters, in addition to the experiences of the previous day, and sharing the expectations on their lives from tomorrow onwards. The patriarch had told them that they had two days off, but that he was waiting for them without fail and in the first hour of the third.

 

Hours earlier, the Aries and Taurus’ golden knights passed through the house of Pisces to give _Gundain_ and _Brigadeiros_ to the owner of the house. Aphrodite served them for dessert at dinner with his friends.

 

Aphrodite provided good wines to his guests during dinner and then they drink _ouzo_ , drunk them enough to decide to stay at home to sleep, and for him carry out his plan, the blond served himself only two glasses of wine throughout the night. The bottle of _ouzo_ was a gift from the Greek twins, who also visited his temple in the afternoon, emphasizing the appointment he had with them for breakfast.

 

Now he just thought to get those photos at any cost. They owed him.

 

* * *

 

It took him a couple of hours preparing for his photo shoot as he was an inexperienced in those arts: between carrying and placing properly between clicks of the trigger his forced models until he achieves the ideal pose. Also consumed several minutes between hitting the perfect tone of foundation, applying a touch of blush, and adding lip balm as the Swede didn’t dare to use lipstick. Nevertheless he did it use black mascara for Shura and the transparent version for Deathmask, in eyelashes and eyebrows; black eyeliner for the Spanish and a brown eyeliner for the Italian, was a wonderful experiment for Aphrodite, and at the end he was fascinated by the general effect. Pisces had succeeded.

 

He placed them among white cushions in a huge wicker chair with the rose garden as background in his indoor garden and between their arms placed a bouquet identical to the ones he gave them earlier that day, wrapping in the huge white ribbons.

 

He was glad to have waited to take those photos, as his friends came to dinner with casual clothes, more formal than the training clothes they wore in the morning. The Italian in a white shirt with a sporty cut and rolled up sleeves, untucked and it favored him a lot, along with jeans in the same color. The Iberian opted for an indigo shirt with white collar and cuffs, with sleeves just as rolled up as the Italian after a while, his style complemented him with black jeans.

 

He photographed them with flash, without flash, with lamps or only with the artificial light of the patio, managed to capture many photos without waking them up. But the Pisces saint also wanted a photo with their eyes open. To achieve this he tried to pinch them, to pat them on the cheeks, or pulling on the hair, in the end the result was photos with unfocused eyes, half-closed eyelids and parted lips. In short: they turned out to be the best pictures.

 

The twelfth temple’s guardian finds out this discovery the following week that he went to the town to have the film developed.

 

They were excellent portraits but had to be careful to show these pictures. He planned to distribute the photographs or even sell them among the Amazons, but he was quick to dismiss those ideas.

 

If one day they would tie loose ends, Shura and Deathmask would corner him until he confessed and they’d confiscate all the printed photographs also with the film.

 

He took particular care to remove all evidence from the faces of his friends, he was relieved to find that afterwards they snored, quite loud, but he wasn’t sure if they would ever remember the moment when he forced them to wake up half-hearted.

 

After two weeks of uneventful situation, Aphrodite looks at his other golden companions with an expert eye and thinks of inviting them to dinner one day.

 

 

To be continued…

 

 

* * *

 

A.N.

It took me a while to upload the chapter because every time I checked it I added another paragraph.   (approx. 6,300 words)

1) C _apriciournus. -_ Capriciousness + Capricornus

2) _Salute! . -_ Cheers! in italian.

3) Tortilla de patatas. - Potato Omelet in spanish. Spanish omelet, the breakfast Shura made for them.  I didn’t know if it is typical anywhere in Spain, I googlee it and the food I described it was one that appeared in the search results.

4) _Grazie mille. -_ Thank you very much, in italian.

5) The roses of Deathmask’s bouquet are of the Sweet Unique variety.

6) The roses of Shura’s bouquet are of the Ebb Tide variety.

7) _Mia dea. -_ My Goddess, in italian.

8) _C'è. -_ There it is, in italian.

9) _Gundain. -_ It is a type of cake made from barley and yeast grains, with tsampa (a type of flour), fresh cheese, wild ginseng and brown sugar. This cake is often served during the Tibetan New Year.

10) _Brigadeiros. -_ Typical Brazilian sweets made with condensed milk, chocolate powder, butter and granulated chocolate.

 _11) Ouzo. -_ It is an aniseed liqueur of Greek origin with a strong sweet flavor and licorice-like scent. It’s made with ripe grapes and anise. It has between 37 ° and 50 ° of alcohol. It’s crystalline and colorless.


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